Event Details

July 20, 2026
5:00PM – 7:00PM
5104 Hwy 208, South Brookfield

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Session Description

Join us at Pleasant Hill Farm for a hands-on look at smart cover cropping! Hosted by David Blanchard and Cindy Rubinfine—who run an intensive, two-acre market garden and greenhouse operation in Pleasant River—this event shows how cover crops can fit into a busy commercial rotation for CSA, markets and restaurants.

Walk the field with us to break down how specific combinations of grasses, legumes and broadleaves are designed to cut fertilizer costs using clovers and forage peas, increase biomass, improve soil structure using the extensive fibrous root system of Sorghum-Sudangrass and suppress nematodes with Pearl Millet.

Join us in the high tunnels to look at how the cover crop conversation looks in a protected space. Where this practice is not as commonly adopted as it is in a field setting, there are still lots of benefits to be realized in incorporated cover crops in the short windows between cash crop production.

Whether you want to build organic matter, compare annual versus perennial mixes to reduce weed pressure or support soil health, come talk about species selection, blends and management with fellow growers.

Demonstrations:

Building Climate-Resilient Soils Through Cover Crop Integration in Vegetable Production

This field demonstration highlights how diverse cover crop blends can enhance nitrogen cycling, improve soil structure and water management, and increase resilience to drought and excess moisture. We’ll explore the different cover crop options and learn how they can support soil health, productivity and sustainability in Nova Scotia vegetable production systems.

High Tunnel Cover Crop Termination

Pleasant Hill farms hosted a winter demonstration for us showcasing the efficacy of flaming, mowing + flaming, mowing + incorporating and tarping on their abilities to terminate a winter cover crop of oats and peas. While the demonstration has been terminated for a few months now, there is still valuable discussion to be had about how well these methods worked for terminating the cover crop, how much residue was left over and how the timing of implementation impacted soil temperature, moisture and soil health.

Phosphorus ‘Mining’ in High Tunnel Soils

Tunnel soils are notorious for developing high phosphorus levels over time. Unlike nitrogen, phosphorus is highly stable in the soil and difficult to get rid of through strictly cash crop production. Research has been conducted on a few cover crops and their ability to remove more phosphorus from the soil compared to other species that are typically grown. The hope for this demonstration is to verify those findings in our local high tunnel environment.

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Guest Speaker

• Manphool Fageria, Perennia Vegetable Specialist 
• Talia Plaskett, Perennia Protected Crop Specialist 
• David Blanchard, Owner and Operator at Pleasant Hill Farm 
• Cindy Rubinfine, Owner and Operator at Pleasant Hill Farm